You Love, and You Give, and You Do it So Well
by awriterofthings
Summary: Beca falls for her R.A. but Chloe tries to keep their relationship platonic.
1. Chapter 1

**You Love, and You Give, and You Do it So Well**

**Chapter One**

Beca was setting up her music equipment in her dorm when there was a knock at the door. She looked over at Kimmy Jin to see if she'd answer it but the other girl just sat at her desk clicking away on her laptop. Sighing, Beca stood up and pulled the door open, revealing a smiling redhead.

"Hi, I'm Chloe. Your RA." The bubbly girl stuck out her hand to shake Beca's.

"My what?" Beca asked, not bothering to shake Chloe's hand.

Chloe dropped her hand but her smile was still big. "Resident assistant. I live down the hall. I'm in charge of you guys. I'm here for you whenever you need help."

"Right, got it," Beca nodded in understanding. "I'm Beca." Beca gestured towards Kimmy Jin who had yet to pay Chloe any mind. "That's Kimmy Jin. I've only known her for like an hour but I've noticed that she doesn't talk much unless it's to destroy your soul. I think I should be worried."

Chloe laughed lightly and poked her head into the room. "Hi, Kimmy Jin." Kimmy Jin turned her head to glare at the redhead before looking back at her laptop. "Okay, this is going to be an interesting year for you."

"Right?" Beca sighed. "At least she keeps to herself, I guess."

Chloe noticed the soundboard on Beca's desk and gestured to it. "What have you got there?"

Beca glanced behind her to see what Chloe had become interested in. "Oh, that's my soundboard. I make mixes."

"That's pretty cool. Hey, I'm co-captain of an a cappella group, the Barden Bellas. You should think about joining."

"A cappella? That's a thing now, right?" Beca asked.

"Yeah, it's become really popular," Chloe said, happily. "So would you be interested?"

Beca made an apologetic face. "Sorry, I don't sing."

"That's too bad," Chloe said with obvious disappointment. "You would've been a nice addition. Anyway, I have to go introduce myself to everyone else but it was nice talking to you, Beca."

"Yeah, you too," Beca said before Chloe walk away to go to the next dorm room. She closed the door and found herself smiling a bit. Chloe seemed nice and she was top model level of pretty. Beca wouldn't mind having to see her throughout the school year. As Beca went back to what she was doing, she heard another knock at the door. She went to open it, figuring it was Chloe but instead she was greeted by her father.

"Hey, Becs!" Mr. Mitchell entered the room and looked over at Beca's roommate. "Hi, I'm Beca's dad."

Kimmy Jin glanced at the man with an uncaring expression before going back to what she was doing.

Ethan Mitchell raised a brow at Beca as if to ask "what's wrong with her?"

Beca shrugged and sat down on the edge of her bed. "So what brings you here?"

"Just checking in on my favorite daughter," Ethan replied as he looked down at Beca's soundboard. He stretched his hand out towards it but quickly retracted it when Beca yelled, "Don't touch that!"

"I'm your only daughter," Beca pointed out.

"And if I had more, you'd be my favorite," Ethan said.

"Okay, so what are you really doing here?"

Ethan sat down on Beca's chair and turned to face the brunette. "I want you to get the most out of your college experience. I know you want to go to LA and I will keep my promise to pay for you to go as long as you keep your grades up and become a part of the community."

"A part of the community?" Beca asked not liking the sound of that at all.

Ethan smiled. "Yeah, join a club, make a bunch of friends, have fun! There's an activities fair this weekend. You should go and check it out. You might find something that interests you."

"Okay, I'll check it out," Beca said lacking the enthusiasm her father wanted to see from her.

"That's all I ask," Ethan said as he stood up. "I'll see you around. Maybe you can come by for dinner tonight."

"Dinner with the step-monster." Beca pretended to think it over. "Yeah, no. I won't be able to make that. Actually, I'll be busy every time you make that offer so…"

"I'm trying here, Becs. You've got to try as well," Ethan said before making his way towards the door. "Make friends," he said before disappearing.

Beca rolled her eyes and laid down on her bed. She picked up her headphones that were resting beside her and put them over her ears before turning on her iPod.

* * *

><p>It was Saturday morning and Beca was making her way out of the dorm to go get breakfast when one of the doors opened and two boys stepped out.<p>

"Hey," one of them greeted her with a goofy grin. "I'm Jesse."

"Beca," she introduced herself.

Jesse patted his roommate on the shoulder. "And this is Benji. Are you off to the activities fair?"

"Nope," Beca replied. Okay, so she had told her father she would check it out but what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him. She'd grab some flyers later to appease him.

"You should. We can all go together," Jesse offered. "It'll be a bonding experience. I've seen you around a few times."

"He's been afraid to say anything to you," Benji added. "Something about you looking capable of murder."

Beca was very okay with that description. It meant people wouldn't bother her or get into her space.

Jesse nudged Benji with his elbow. "I didn't say that, new best friend of ours. Benji mishears things sometimes. It's all the magic tricks he does that go wrong. He almost blew off his ear the other day."

"That's what that was," Beca said with realization. She had heard the commotion a few days ago but hadn't made anything of it.

"Yeah, Chloe was nicer than anyone else would've been about it," Benji said, sheepishly.

Beca perked up at hearing that name. She hadn't seen the senior for the last two days but she knew that was her fault. She tended to stay holed up in her room working on mixes. "Is she going to be at the activities fair?" She asked, casually.

"She is," Jesse replied. "She and her very hot best friend are running the Barden Bella booth."

"He thinks he stands a chance with Aubrey Posen. She's the RA of another hall and pretty much the scariest woman I've ever come across."

Jesse smiled. "She's adorable."

"Just the other day she threatened to pour coffee in your lap if you didn't stop looking at her. Besides, I heard that she has a girlfriend."

Jesse's shoulders slumped. "Of course she's taken. Oh well. Who's she dating? Is it Chloe?"

"Is Chloe even into girls?" Beca asked, intrigued.

"She is. You'd know these things if you joined the floor for our group activities," Jesse stated.

"That sounds painfully lame," Beca replied. "I'll have to pass."

"It's good times," Jesse assured her. "So are you coming with us?"

"Sure, whatever," Beca replied. "Lead the way."

Chloe was standing at the booth handing out flyers with Aubrey when the blonde's girlfriend approached them. "Hey, Stace."

"Hey, you two having fun?" Stacie kissed Aubrey on the cheek.

Aubrey sighed. "We can't find anyone perfect for the group."

"We've found several people who could work but Aubrey's being picky," Chloe corrected.

"We can't afford to be picky, babe," Stacie said. "We need people or we won't have a group."

"I know, I know." Aubrey ran a hand through her hair.

Chloe saw Beca walking their way and brightened at the sight of her. She waved to the brunette and Beca smiled in return. "What brings you here?"

"I was talked into it," Beca replied.

"Well, you should really think about joining the Bellas," Chloe said. "And don't say you can't sing. I've heard you when you think no one's around."

Beca smirked. "Okay, I can sing but that doesn't mean I want to be in an a cappella group."

"I can totally convince you," Chloe said, cheerily. "Come by my dorm later. We'll talk music."

Beca nodded. "Okay, I'll see you a little later."

Stacie watched Beca walk away before looking at Chloe. "She's hot."

"She is," Chloe agreed with a smile.

"She's a freshman," Aubrey stated. "You're a senior."

"A three year difference isn't a big deal," Stacie assured the redhead.

"Woah, nothing's going to happen there," Chloe stated. "She's just starting school and I'm about to leave."

"Exactly," Aubrey said, glad that Chloe wasn't going to pursue a relationship with the younger girl. "Besides, you can't date anyone on your floor."

"I know and I'm not going to," Chloe assured her best friend. "Now can we take the dramatics down a notch? We have flyers to hand out." Chloe knew there were rules against dating residents on her floor but she wasn't worried about it. She wouldn't let anything happen between her and Beca.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Chloe was sitting on her bed next to Beca as she made the brunette listen to her favorite songs as well as songs done by a cappella groups. When she started up Titanium, Beca's head snapped to her direction. "You know David Guetta?"

Chloe smiled at Beca's cute surprised expression. "Have I been living under a rock? Of course I know David Guetta. This song is my lady jam."

The mental image that hit Beca after that statement made a blush creep up her neck. She cleared her throat and stopped the track. "You have a pretty eclectic taste in music. I even got some ideas from listening to them so thanks for that."

"Anytime," Chloe said, happily. "Are you going to school for music?"

Beca nodded. "I am. My dad's not thrilled about it but he's happy that I'm at least trying this whole college thing out."

"This whole college thing is pretty awesome once you've gotten used to the atmosphere," Chloe assured her. "I'm having a group thing with the hall next week. You should come. You never made an appearance to the ones I held this week."

"Yeah, sorry," Beca rubbed her hands on her jean-clad thighs. "I'm not big on groups or social events."

"Shy?" Chloe asked.

"Socially awkward," Beca corrected. "I'm just not much of a conversationalist. And I'm sarcastic a majority of the time and people don't seem to like that. It's best that I stay clear of people."

"What about Benji and Jesse? I saw you with them this morning. Aren't they your friends?"

"I just met them this morning. And how many of these group things do you do?" Beca felt like Chloe was always trying to get the hall to bond.

"I did it twice this week but it'll be once a week when I start getting busy with school and the Bellas. Some weeks it won't even happen. And speaking of the Bellas, you really should join. It'd be good for you. You'll make new friends and I'll be there. I'm pretty awesome."

Beca chuckled. "You really want me in this group, huh?"

Chloe nodded. "You have an amazing voice."

Beca rolled the pros and cons around in her head. Cons: it's a cappella and there's synchronized dancing. Pros: Chloe. Her dad will leave her alone about making friends. And again, Chloe." Beca wasn't sure what it was but the redhead had gotten her attention the moment she laid eyes on her and she found herself wanting to get to know the other girl. "I'll think about it."

Chloe picked up a flyer from her nightstand and handed it to Beca. Beca glanced it over and saw that she had until next Friday to make up her mind. "So what are you doing for the rest of the day?"

Beca shrugged. "Probably work on my music."

Chloe wasn't surprised by the answer. She wanted Beca to have a fulfilling experience in college, though and decided to make it her duty to ensure that the brunette wasn't constantly cooped up in her room. "We should hang-out. I'm not doing anything until tonight."

Beca began to fiddle with the bracelet on her arm. "What would you want to do?"

"We can watch movies," Chloe suggested.

Beca made an apologetic face. "I'm not big on movies. They're all the same to me."

"Fair enough," Chloe said, simply, which surprised Beca. Usually people made a big deal out of her not enjoying films. Chloe got up from her bed and turned on the PS3 that was resting beside her TV. "How about video games?"

"That I can do." Beca accepted the controller that Chloe tossed towards her. "What are we playing?" Beca was expecting a rated everyone type of game. Something cute with lots of bright colors. She was not expecting-

"Resident Evil." Chloe got back onto the bed and leaned against her headboard. "Let's make some zombies our bitches." Beca smirked and got comfortable against the headboard as well.

* * *

><p>Two hours later...<p>

"You curse like a sailor," Beca stated once the level they were playing was complete.

"I tend to curse during high-stress situations," Chloe informed her. "It's my father's fault." Chloe got up from the bed and turned off her console and the tv. "Have you been around campus much since school started?"

Beca shook her head. "I mostly just go to class and go back to my dorm."

Chloe slipped her shoes on and gestured towards the door. "Come on, I'll give you a tour. You'll love this place if you know all the cool spots and the best place to go for the most amazing burgers you'll ever have in your life."

Beca quirked a brow as she got up from the bed. "That's a pretty big statement."

"It's also a true one," Chloe assured her.

"I don't know," Beca said as she followed Chloe out of the room. "If you hype up these burgers and they end up to be nothing more than mediocre, I'll be so devastated. I'm giving you a chance to retract your statement."

Chloe giggled. "I don't need to do that. These burgers are legit the best thing ever. We'll eat there later." Chloe left her room with Beca and as they made their way out of the dorm, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out and saw that it was a text from Aubrey.

Aubrey[3:06pm]:Come over.

Chloe[3:06pm]: I'm hanging with Beca.

Aubrey[3:07pm]: ….Chloe.

Chloe[3:07pm]: We're just friends. Relax.

Aubrey[3:08pm]: Freshman. Against RA rules. That is all.

Chloe rolled her eyes and placed her phone back in her pocket. She didn't understand why the blonde was so worried about her relationship with Beca. Nothing was going to happen.

* * *

><p>Chloe finished her meal and sat back in her seat as she smiled at Beca. "Best burger ever, right?"<p>

Beca shrugged. "It was alright, I guess."

Chloe looked at the brunette with wide eyes. "Are you kidding me?! Alright? Are your taste buds abnormal?"

Beca grinned as she picked up her drink to sip it. "You're very emotional about these burgers."

Chloe playfully glared at the freshman. "You're teasing me aren't you?"

Beca laughed. "I had to. You should've seen your face. You looked offended."

Chloe picked a fry up from her plate and tossed it so that it bounced off Beca's shirt.

Beca chuckled at the pout Chloe was now sporting. "Ready to get out of here? I know you said you had a party to get ready for."

"I do," Chloe checked her cell phone for the time. "I'd invite you but RAs can't be seen drinking and I plan on doing a lot of that." Chloe raised her hand and signaled to their waiter that she needed the check. "This was fun. We should make it a thing that we do."

"Yeah," Beca agreed. "We should."

Chloe smiled at the brunette. "Thanks for hanging with me. I know I pulled you away from your mixes."

Beca smirked. "The alternative wasn't so bad." Chloe's smile widened at what she thought was a compliment but Beca's next words made her smile falter. "I mean, who doesn't love burgers?" Beca noted Chloe's expression and laughed. "You make it too easy, Beale. I'm teasing. I enjoyed your company."

Chloe shook her head in amusement. "You're trouble."

"I can't argue there." When the waiter placed the check on the table, Beca picked it up.

"No, I've got it," Chloe said as she opened her purse to retrieve her wallet.

"Too late." Beca handed the man the cash including tip.

"Thank you, you didn't have to get that. I invited you out."

"I wanted to," Beca said as she stood up.

"Well, our next meal together is on me," Chloe promised as they left the restaurant.

"Deal," Beca said, pleased that Chloe wanted to hang out with her again.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Beca had joined the Bellas. She hadn't planned on it but on the day of auditions, she found herself on stage and the next day Chloe had kidnapped her from her dorm while she was mixing and taken her to aca-initiation night. That had been two weeks ago. Beca was now sitting at her desk looking at the mixed CD she had made for Chloe. The redhead had complained the other day about needing new music so Beca had created mixes out of some of the redhead's favorite songs. She felt that it might be weird so she hadn't given it to Chloe yet.

Kimmy Jin looked over at Beca and rolled her eyes. She had seen the cd with Chloe's name sprawled on it a few days ago and noticed that Beca was struggling with the idea of presenting it to their RA. "Just give her the love cd. It's not like you're proposing marriage."

Beca was slightly startled by her roommate's words and jumped in her seat. "It's not a love cd. It's-"

"I don't care what it is. Just give it to her."

"Okay, but I don't have a crush on Chloe or anything, Kimmy." Beca wanted to establish this fact. This was how rumors got started after all. Not that Kimmy Jin had any interest in spreading rumors or talking about her at all.

"Yeah, sure." Kimmy replied, having already lost interest in the conversation.

Beca picked up the cd and stood up to leave the room. Once out in the hall, she took a deep breath and made her way towards Chloe's room, which had a whiteboard hanging from the door with a marker. She knocked on the door gently and seconds later, Chloe opened it.

"Beca, hey!" She greeted, happily.

Beca smiled at the reaction and her nerves left her but before she could say anything else, she heard a voice from inside the redhead's room.

"Chloe are we going to finish this or what? I'm playing football with the guys and Amy in a bit."

"Hold on, Tom," Chloe said before returning her attention to Beca. "What's up, Becs?"

"Nothing." Beca did her best to hide the cd behind her back without being too obvious. "You're busy. I should've texted or something first."

"Chloe," Tom whined from inside the room.

Chloe stepped out of the room and closed the door to block Tom out. "Are you okay? Do you need to talk?"

"No, it's fine. I just wanted to say hi," Beca said, feeling stupid now for showing up unannounced.

Chloe looked at Beca apologetically. "Sorry, we'll talk later, okay?"

Beca nodded and waved a goodbye before Chloe disappeared back into her room. As soon as the door closed, Beca's shoulders slumped and she went back to her dorm. She placed the cd on her desk and grabbed her laptop before lying down. Kimmy glanced at the brunette but refrained from comment.

Minutes had passed before there was a knock at the door and thinking it was Chloe, Beca immediately got up and opened the door. Her smile faded when she saw that it was Jesse. "Oh, it's you."

"Yeah, your bestie," Jesse said, enthusiastically. "You should be thrilled to see me. Who'd you want it to be?"

"Chloe," Kimmy Jin answered monotonously from her desk. "She has a thing for our RA."

Jesse smiled big at this. "I knew it! I totally saw this coming."

Beca glared at the boy. "I do not have a crush on Chloe."

"Lies. You need to make your move. Guys and girls are always hitting on her. She's like the most wanted girl at Barden."

"Can we not talk about this right here?" Beca whispered, not wanting their conversation to be heard echoing down the hallway.

"Come on," Jesse took a step back and Beca exited her room, closing the door behind her. She followed Jesse to his room and plopped down on the swivel chair near his desk. "So," Jesse began with a grin, "are you going to ask her out?"

"Of course not," Beca sighed. "Besides, she has some guy in her room. I think his name is Tom."

Jesse laughed. "Jealous?"

"Shut up," Beca muttered with a roll of her eyes.

"Chloe is Tom's tutor," Jesse explained. "I heard they used to be sort of a thing but they're just friends now." Beca brightened at hearing this information but she hoped Jesse didn't notice. "You should ask her out."

Beca shook her head. "No way. She's not into me and she's an RA. Isn't it against some type of rule for an RA to date their resident?"

"Well yeah, but who cares? No one will say anything."

"But if someone does say something, she can get into a lot of trouble, right? Wait, it doesn't even matter. Chloe's not interested in some freshman."

"She seems into you," Jesse assured her. "Trust me. I'm a pro on this topic. I've seen it in all the movies. Forbidden relationship excels despite the obstacles."

"This isn't one of your lame movies." Beca gestured towards his movie collection that was alphabetically placed on a dvd holder. "That's not real life."

Jesse ignored her words. "You should drop hints or something."

"I'm not going to do anything. The crush will go away. I'm just going to ignore it," Beca said with finality.

Jesse looked at Beca with sympathy. "That never works. You have to do something about it or it'll just fester until you do something stupid."

"We're not talking about this anymore," Beca stated as she stood up and moved towards the door. "Please don't say anything to anyone."

"No worries. I won't," Jesse promised. He knew that Beca's attempt to ignore her feelings for Chloe wouldn't be successful but he decided to let her figure that out on her own.

Beca was walking out of the dorm building with her laptop bag when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and read the text message she had received.

Cynthia Rose [1:04pm]: Bellas partying tonight sans our captains! You're coming. You have no choice. Pick you up tonight!

* * *

><p>Chloe opened her room door just as Stacie had been about to knock on it. "Hey, Stace." She then looked to Aubrey who was standing beside her. "Hey, what brings you two here?"<p>

Tom exited the room and threw a wave at Chloe. "Thanks for the help. Later, ladies," he said to Stacie and Aubrey as he rushed to go join the football game with his friends.

"Still his tutor?" Aubrey asked.

Chloe sighed. "Yes, he spent half the time wanting to watch YouTube videos."

"I don't know how he made it to college," Aubrey said as she entered Chloe's room. "We just came by to hangout. We're bored."

"Make yourselves comfortable," Chloe said. "I'll be right back."

"Wait, where are you-," Chloe was out of the room before Aubrey could get her question out.

Chloe went down the hall towards Beca's room and knocked on the door. No one answered after a minute so she knocked again. She was about to walk away when the door finally opened, revealing an irritated Kimmy Jin. "Hi, Kimmy. Is Beca in?"

"Nope," Kimmy Jin began to close the door but Chloe stopped it with her hand.

"Do you know where she is? She came by my room earlier and we didn't get a chance to talk."

"I don't keep tabs on the white girl." Kimmy moved away from the door, leaving it open as she went to pick up Beca's mix for Chloe. "Here," she walked back towards the door. "She wanted to give you this."

Chloe took the cd and smiled when she saw her name written neatly on it. She had seen Beca's handwriting when it came to her schoolwork and this was a lot neater than that. Beca had obviously taken care in writing it. "Thanks. Can you tell her I stopped by?"

"Technology exists for a reason. You can tell her yourself." Kimmy closed the door and Chloe shook her head in amusement before making her way back to her room. She opened the door and rolled her eyes when she saw her friends making-out on her bed. "You two could've stayed where you were to do that."

Stacie grinned as she pulled away from Aubrey. "We were just passing time while we waited for you." She noticed the case Chloe was holding and snatched it from her. "What's this?"

"Beca made it for me," Chloe replied with a smile.

Stacie grinned. "So what's going on there?"

Chloe took the cd back and sat down on her chair. "Nothing's going on. We're friends. She's really cool."

"She is," Stacie agreed. She had spoken to the brunette a few times outside of the Bellas and had enjoyed their conversations. "You two would be cute together."

"Don't encourage it," Aubrey chastised but said nothing more on the topic. "Are you going to the a cappella party tonight being thrown by the BU Harmonics?"

Chloe nodded as she inserted the cd into her laptop. She wanted to download the songs onto her laptop so that she could put them onto her iPod. "Yeah, I'm in." Chloe picked her cell phone up from her desk and texted Beca.

Chloe [1:16pm]: Thanks for the cd.

Beca [1:18pm]: …did you break into my room?

Chloe chuckled at the question. She could practically see the cute confused expression on Beca's face.

Chloe [1:19pm]: Kimmy Jin gave it to me when I stopped by to see you. Disappointed you weren't there.

Beca [1:21pm]: Good ol' Kimmy Jin. Doing things she's not supposed to. And you should be happy I wasn't there. You told me to get out more.

Chloe [1:22pm]: You're not upset are you? And this is true, but you're probably somewhere with your laptop. I'm guessing under your favorite tree.

Beca [1:23pm]: But I'm still not in my room. It's progress, Beale! And no, I'm not upset. I did make the cd for you to have.

Chloe was immersed in her conversation with Beca and by the time she finally looked up to say something to her friends, she noticed that they weren't in her room anymore. She hadn't even heard the room door open or close. She was actually kind of glad because now she could play Beca's mix without interruption.

Chloe hit play on her media player and got onto her bed as the music began to flow from the speakers and, unknowingly, into her heart.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Beca was standing in a corner nursing a drink while she watched the party-goers dance and make fools of themselves. She hadn't been there for longer than an hour but it seemed like everyone was already drunk. She was contemplating sneaking out - well, she really didn't have to do any sneaking seeing as how the Bellas along with Jesse were preoccupied with having a good time. As soon as Beca made up her mind to leave, she spotted her gorgeous RA dancing with her friends.

Maybe she could stay a little bit longer.

Beca sipped her drink and made a face at the taste of it. She wanted to at least find something decent to drink if she was going to stick around. She made her way towards the kitchen and decided that had been a bad idea when a boy stepped into her path.

"Hi," he smiled drunkenly. "I'm Uni. I sing with the Trebles."

"That's good for you," Beca said as she moved to walk by him.

He stepped with her to stop her from leaving. "Dance with me?"

"No, thanks. I'm good."

"Why not?"

Beca felt an arm around her waist and before she could slug whoever it was, she heard Chloe speaking. "Other than the fact that she's not interested, she's off limits."

Uni held his hands up in surrender. "My bad, Chloe," he said before stumbling off.

Beca let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks. I should've used that rule to begin with."

Chloe frowned, which Beca found adorable. "What?"

"Being off limits because of the whole no Bellas with Trebles thing."

"Oh, right! Yeah, that." Chloe removed her hand from around Beca's waist and linked their fingers together. "I didn't know you were going to be here. I would've found you sooner and probably not have drunk so much. Bad example and all."

Beca grinned. "I won't tell." She gestured towards the kitchen. "I'm really thirsty."

Chloe took the cup Beca was holding. "Not liking this?" She sipped it herself and made a similar face to Beca's. "It's warm."

"I've been holding it since it was shoved into my hand by Amy an hour ago," Beca explained.

Chloe pulled Beca towards the kitchen where it was luckily vacant and opened the fridge to pull a soda out for the brunette all while still holding her hand. "Not much of a drinker, huh?"

Beca shook her head as she accepted the drink. "I don't like not having total control of my actions. Something about walking around dizzy with little to no inhibitions is a little unappealing."

"How about dancing?" Chloe grinned. "Is that unappealing?"

"It is actually," Beca replied, looking down at their linked hands. "May I borrow my hand, please?" If it had been anyone else, they would've never even gotten a chance to hold her hand but Beca didn't mind so much with Chloe.

"Yeah, I guess you can use it, but I want it back asap." Chloe let her hand slide from Beca's as she moved to the fridge to grab another drink to keep her nice buzz going.

"Hey, want to come outside with me?" Chloe asked after Beca opened her drink. "They have a swinging porch bench."

"Yeah, sure," Beca replied. "I could use some fresh air."

Chloe opened her beer and linked her fingers with Beca's once again before guiding her out of the kitchen and towards the front door.

Once outside, Chloe sat down on the bench and glanced over at Beca. "So enjoying yourself?"

"Not particularly. This isn't my scene and they play a lot of Madonna remixes."

"Yeah, BU Harmoics is big on Madonna," Chloe explained before sipping her beer. "Oh, speaking of music! That cd you made me was epic! Thanks so much!"

Beca smiled, amused by Chloe's enthusiastic outburst. "You're welcome, Chlo."

Beca had a question to ask and wondered if the redhead was drunk enough to hopefully forget it tomorrow. As she contemplated asking, she was ripped from her reverie at the feeling of a hand on her thigh.

"You okay? You have your "I'm thinking way too hard" face on."

"Uh, y-yeah, I'm good." Beca said before taking a sip of her drink to preoccupy herself for a second.

Chloe looked skeptical of Beca's answer. "You sure?"

"Actually, I do have a question." Beca fiddled with the meal topper of her can as she spoke. "Um, earlier when I stopped by there was a guy in your room."

"Tom," Chloe informed her.

"Yeah, Tom. Is he like… your boyfriend?" She knew Jesse had told her that he wasn't but she wanted to make sure. She didn't know why it mattered. It wasn't like she was going to ask Chloe out or anything, but she really wanted to know.

Chloe laughed. "God, no. I mean, we sort of dated our freshman year but no. He's just a friend. Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering," Beca replied, trying to remain as nonchalant as possible. "Are you dating anyone?"

Chloe shook her head. "Single, and I plan on keeping it that way for the rest of my senior year. What about you? You and Jesse seem to get along pretty well."

Beca laughed. "He's like an annoying brother. I'm also single."

"Good to know" was Chloe's response and it left Beca overthinking those words. Good to know? Why was it good to know that she was single and not into Jesse? "You're making that face again," Chloe stated as she rested her head on Beca's shoulder.

"Tired?" Beca asked, surprised by this new level of closeness.

"No," Chloe replied, simply.

Beca said nothing more as they sat in silence listening to the music thumping from inside.

* * *

><p>Beca's eyes fluttered open the next morning and she frowned as she took in the atmosphere. Her frown faded when she remembered that Chloe had talked her into spending the night. She had fallen asleep lying on her back with her fingers clasped together over her stomach. She hadn't wanted her hands to wander while she was asleep. Chloe, though, had no qualms about that, not allowing Beca any ounce of personal space. The redhead was pressed into Beca's side, her head resting near her shoulder, her leg thrown over Beca's and her arm flung over the smaller girl's waist. Beca thought Chloe seemed to be very comfortable and wondered if she would freak out upon waking up and seeing their position.<p>

Deciding she didn't want that to happen, Beca tried to shift away from Chloe, but the redhead only tightened her arm around her. Beca stilled immediately and waited a few seconds before trying again. It was to no avail, though. Chloe's sleeping form wasn't going to release her. Beca relaxed and closed her eyes wanting to get some more sleep in since it was apparent that she wasn't going anywhere. As she was about to drift back off, she heard Chloe's phone ringing.

Chloe groaned, aggravated by the loud insistent ringing. She pulled away from Beca and fumbled out of bed to pull her phone from her jeans that were lying on the floor. "Hello," she answered tiredly.

"Just checking to see if you're alive," Aubrey replied.

"Barely," Chloe mumbled as she looked over at her bed. She smiled at the sight of a sleeping Beca. What she didn't know was that the brunette was only feigning sleep. "What time is it?"

"It's eight," Aubrey answered as if that wasn't a ridiculous time to be calling to check in.

"Ugh, Bree!" Chloe whined. "I'm tired. Call back at twelve."

"You're not sleeping in until twelve," Aubrey stated. "I'll call back at ten. We'll have breakfast. Hey, I called all the other Bellas to make sure they made it home safe but Beca's the only one I can't reach."

"She's safe," Chloe assured her, hoping her friend wouldn't pry.

"She's in your room isn't she?" Aubrey sighed.

"Fast asleep," Chloe said, waiting for Aubrey's lecture.

"Did you two-,"

"Of course not," Chloe answered before the blonde could finish asking her question. "She just spent the night. She was my cuddle buddy."

"She doesn't seem the cuddling type. And be careful, Chloe. I think you have one foot over the line here."

"We're just friends. I don't see her as anything more. You worry too much." Chloe moved back towards her bed. "I'm going back to bed. I'll see you for breakfast." She ended the call and set her phone on her nightstand before slowly getting back into bed. She cuddled back into Beca's side and quickly fell back asleep.

Beca's eyes opened once she was sure Chloe was asleep and she thought about the redhead's phone call. She could only hear Chloe's side of the conversation but apparently Aubrey was worried about the state of their RA/resident relationship but Chloe had made things clear. She didn't see Beca as anything more than a friend.

Sighing and feeling quite miserable now, Beca finally maneuvered herself out from Chloe's grasp. Once up, she changed out of the shorts and t-shirt Chloe had given her the night before and put back on her own clothes. Beca took one last look at Chloe's peacefully sleeping form before slipping out of the room to go wallow in self-pity in her own space.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

A few days later…

Beca was in the gym doing cardio with the other Bellas when Aubrey finally dismissed them. She had perfected her ability to avoid Chloe outside of the Bellas but as she exited the gym and made her way back towards her dorm, she heard her name being called. She turned around and was slightly terrified to see an angry Aubrey making her way over to her.

"Why are you ignoring Chloe?" Aubrey asked.

"I'm not ignoring Chloe." Avoiding and ignoring were two different things.

Aubrey narrowed her eyes at the brunette. "She thinks she did or said something wrong at the party a few nights ago, did she?"

"What? No, she was fine," Beca assured her. "Look, I've just been busy."

"Busy doing what? You don't have a life," Aubrey stated, folding her arms across her chest. "If you're pissed at Chloe for something, you need to tell her. You're being mean and I won't have her being all sad because you want to be a jerk."

Beca was taken aback by Aubrey's words. She hadn't realized that she had been hurting Chloe's feelings. She honestly didn't even think Chloe would care that she hadn't been around much. "Okay, I'll talk to her." Beca spotted her dad walking towards her and rolled her eyes.

"Hey, Becs!" Ethan greeted his daughter. "We should do a late lunch. Are you free?"

"I have a paper to write," Beca said. "It's due tomorrow and I haven't even started."

Ethan looked disapprovingly at his daughter. "You can't procrastinate like that, Beca."

"I do my best work last minute," Beca assured him. "Besides, I'm awesome at copying and pasting." Beca saw a lecture coming and quickly added, "I'm kidding, Dad. Relax. I've just been busy with other things. Like the Bellas." Beca gestured towards Aubrey. "This is the Bella captain, Aubrey Posen."

Ethan reached out to shake Aubrey's hand. "Hi, Aubrey. How's Beca doing in the group?"

"She doesn't agree with anything I say and she wants to change my set-list but she's an amazing singer," Aubrey said, before looking back at Beca. "Talk to her."

"I will," Beca said, trying to refrain from rolling her eyes.

"You better," Aubrey said as she walked back towards the gym where Chloe was waiting for her by the door.

"What'd you do?" Chloe asked.

"Just wanted to talk to her," Aubrey replied.

"Aubrey," Chloe began in a warning tone.

"You were being all woe is me because of her so I told her to get her shit together," Aubrey explained. "She claimed to be busy the last few days and she has a paper to write today that's due tomorrow so you probably won't hear from her today either."

"Why'd you say anything to her?" Chloe whined.

"Because you wouldn't," Aubrey stated.

"Well, what'd she say?" Chloe asked, curiously.

"You didn't do anything wrong at the party, she's not upset with you, she's just busy."

Chloe sighed and glanced over at Beca who was talking to her father. "I still feel like she's avoiding me."

"Then go talk to her," Aubrey said.

"I will," Chloe said, determinedly before making her way over to the brunette.

"We'll have lunch later, Dad," Beca assured the man. "I have to get going."

Ethan saw Chloe walking their way and gestured to her. "Isn't that your RA?"

Beca glanced over and instantly became nervous at the sight of Chloe. "It is. Hey, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Trying to get rid of me?" Ethan smirked.

"Yeah, pretty much," Beca said, hoping the man would leave.

Ethan studied his daughter for a moment and noticed how anxious she now looked. "Do you like her? I had a crush on my RA when I was in college."

"Leave before she gets here!" Beca whispered loudly.

"We actually dated for a while," Ethan admitted as he smiled at the memory. "It was fun sneaking around."

"Dad," Beca whined as Chloe neared.

"I'm gone," Ethan said before walking away to give his daughter the privacy she wanted with the redhead.

"Hey," Chloe smiled as she stopped in front of Beca. "Can we talk?"

"Yeah, Aubrey told me you think I'm upset with you. I'm not."

"She told me," Chloe said. "Are you sure there's nothing wrong, though?"

"I would tell you if there was," Beca said, hoping Chloe couldn't see through her lie.

Chloe didn't completely believe that but she let it go. "So can we hangout? I've been wanting to hear all the new mixes I'm sure you've been working hard on."

"We can definitely hangout just not tonight," Beca said, apologetically. "I have a paper to write so I pretty much have to hole myself up in my room and write until it's done."

Chloe grinned. "I told you to stop procrastinating."

"It's how I do my best work," Beca smiled back. "Are you heading back to your dorm? I'll walk with you."

"Sorry, I have to go over Bella stuff with Aubrey," Chloe said, really wanting to bail on Aubrey just for a few minutes with Beca. "I'll be back at the dorm by four so if you finish your paper any time after that, you should come over."

Beca nodded. "Okay yeah, I can do that."

"Awesome," Chloe said before gesturing back towards the gym. "I better get back to it. See you later, hopefully."

Beca watched Chloe walk away before heading towards her dorm. She definitely needed to figure out what to do about her feelings for the senior. As Beca entered her dorm room, she saw Kimmy Jin playing video games with two of her friends. Sighing, she got onto her bed, grabbing her headphones and laptop once seated. She did have the option to go to the study room down the hall but she wanted to write this paper in the comfort of her bed.

* * *

><p>An hour had passed and Beca had only written half a page. She kept getting distracted by Kimmy Jin and her friends. Rolling her eyes, she got up and left the room with her laptop. She made her way over to Chloe's room and hesitated before knocking on the door lightly.<p>

Chloe opened the door a few seconds later, smiling at Beca's presence. "Hey, you."

"Hey," Beca said. "Sorry to do this, but can I write my paper in here? Kimmy is playing video games and I hate the study room."

Chloe smirked. "The library would've been the perfect spot to write a last minute paper."

Beca scrunched up her face at the mention of the library. "I don't even know where that is," she admitted.

Chloe laughed and shook her head before stepping aside to let the brunette in. "Of course you can write your paper here, Becs."

"I'll be quiet," Beca promised as she walked into the room. "I just needed a serene atmosphere but with awesome company, you know?"

Chloe felt a flutter in her stomach at Beca's words. "Won't I be a distraction?"

Beca shook her head. "You'll probably keep me motivated if anything." Beca placed her laptop on Chloe's desk and sat down on the chair. "What were you up to?"

Beca gestured to her bed where her iPod was resting. "Listening to music and thinking."

"What were you listening to?" Beca asked.

"Your mixes." Chloe had been thinking about Beca as she tried to make sense of her feelings for the freshman.

Beca smirked. "Good choice." Her stomach then growled causing her to frown. "Hm, that's inconvenient." She didn't have time to be hungry. She had a paper to write.

Chloe laughed as she reached for her purse. "I'll go get us something. Work on your paper."

"You don't have to do that," Beca assured her.

"It's fine," Chloe said. "I want to. Besides, I'm hungry myself."

"I can give you money," Beca moved to get up but Chloe stopped her.

"Write your paper." Chloe moved towards the door. "I'll be back. Don't answer the door for strangers," she joked before slipping out of the room.

Beca smiled to herself before turning her attention to her laptop. Chloe was always doing nice things for her. She wasn't used to anyone else being as kind towards her and it always caught her off guard. Sighing, Beca shoved thoughts of her crush to the far back of her mind so she could focus on writing her paper.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Beca typed the last sentence of her paper and let out a relieved breath as she saved the document and closed her laptop. She didn't want to look at the document again until she had to print it.

Chloe looked up from the book she had been reading. "Done?"

"Finally," Beca confirmed.

"Want me to proof it for you?" Chloe asked as she closed her book.

"You don't have to do that," Beca assured her. "If it sucks, it sucks."

"Don't be silly." Chloe gestured for the laptop. "Let me proofread it for you."

Beca reluctantly handed Chloe her laptop. She hadn't wanted to disturb the redhead with her own work. "I just don't want to bother you with it."

"I don't mind, Beca," Chloe smiled as she opened the laptop back up. "You're never bothering me."

Chloe began to read the paper while Beca pretended to busy herself with looking at her phone. The brunette watched as Chloe read her paper; her gaze trailing Chloe's jawline, imagining what it would be like to place gentle kisses along it. She let out a breath, earning herself Chloe's attention.

"You okay, Becs?" Chloe glanced over at Beca.

"Yep," Beca let out as she quickly looked down at her phone. She pulled up Jesse's name and sent him a quick text.

Beca [9:02pm]: Okay, this crush is massive. What am I supposed to do?

Jesse[9:06pm]: :) Flirt. Put yourself out there.

Beca [9:07pm]: I meant, what am I supposed to do to stop it?

Jesse[9:08pm]: Dude, you like her. Just go for it! Where are you?

Beca[9:09pm]: Chloe's room. She's proofing my paper.

Jesse[9:10pm]: I'm sure she'd like to proof a lot more than that. ;)

Beca[9:12pm]: Don't be an idiot. It has been established that Chloe Beale is out of my league.

Jesse[9:13pm]: Never know unless you ask her out. Stop being a wimp.

Beca[9:13pm]: I'm not being a wimp. I'll ask her out now.

Jesse[9:14pm]: Seriously?!

Beca mentally prepped herself before looking up at Chloe, who was still immersed in her paper. "Hey, Chloe."

"Yeah, Becs?" Chloe said as she continued to read the paper.

Beca tried to ask her out. She really did. It was just that she forgot how to form words. It felt like her throat had closed in and speaking wasn't a thing that she could do.

Chloe looked over at Beca. "What's up?"

"Nothing, sorry," Beca said, quickly before looking back down at her phone.

Chloe smiled at Beca's behavior before returning her attention to the brunette's paper.

Beca rolled her eyes at herself and went back to texting Jesse.

Beca[9:18pm]: Never mind. I totally just failed at that. She probably thinks I'm an idiot now.

Jesse[9:19pm]: We'll meet up tomorrow. You obviously need pointers from this chick magnet.

Beca[9:20pm]: Yeah, I have a feeling taking advice from you will lead me down a dark and embarrassing path. Night, Jesse. See you tomorrow.

Beca shut her cell phone screen off and glanced around at the items on Chloe's desk. A piece of paper caught her interest that she hadn't noticed until now. It was information about vocal cord nodules. She picked up the paper and scanned it, frowning as she reached the end of the paper. Chloe hadn't noticed her reading it so she set it back down before going onto her phone to do more research on the topic. She had noticed Chloe rubbing her throat the last couple of days but she hadn't thought much of it. She had simply thought it was a habit of the redhead's.

Beca's heart broke as she read about nodes. This could seriously impact Chloe's singing. "Hey, I'm going to go get tea. What flavor would you like?"

"I thought you hated tea," Chloe asked, amused by Beca's sudden need for the drink.

"Yeah, I'm just craving it," Beca said as she stood up.

"Okay, mint tea would be great. Thanks, Beca."

Beca smiled. "No problem. I'll be right back." Beca left the room and wondered if anyone else knew of Chloe's nodes. She wouldn't say anything. It wasn't her place, but she would at least make sure that Chloe rested her vocals as much as possible.

* * *

><p>A few days later…<p>

Chloe was lying on her bed as she and Beca watched a movie on her laptop. She had been more than surprised when Beca decided that a movie marathon would be how they spent their time hanging out.

"Are you liking the movie?" Chloe asked, curiously.

"You're not supposed to be talking," Beca said, simply.

"That didn't answer my question." Chloe knew Beca hated movies and really wanted to know what brought on the sudden urge for a marathon.

"It's… okay, I guess," Beca replied. "I mean, if you can turn off your brain long enough to accept that those two are made for each other when they're obviously not. There's absolutely no chemistry there. She had more of a connection with the barista in the beginning of this movie than she did with this dude."

Chloe chuckled as she stopped the movie. "Why did you insist on watching this?"

"You like movies. I thought it'd be something different for us to do."

Chloe sat up and looked at Beca suspiciously. "You've been acting weird these last few days. What's up?"

Beca bit at her lower lip, contemplating whether to tell Chloe that she had seen that paper about nodes. "Okay so… I might've gotten a glimpse of the paper that was on your desk a few nights ago."

Chloe frowned in confusion. "What paper?"

"Um, it had information about vocal nodules."

Realization struck Chloe and everything Beca had done for her these last few days made so much more sense.

"I'm really sorry," Beca added. "I didn't mean to invade your privacy or anything. I saw it and I wanted to help out. You know, make sure you'd be okay and everything."

Chloe continued to look at Beca without saying a word. She was truly touched by the freshman's kindness.

"You're pissed aren't you?" Beca got up from the bed, ignoring the ache in her chest. "I'll leave."

Chloe snapped back to reality. "No, stay. I just… that's really sweet of you, Beca. Thank you."

Beca shrugged. "You're like my best friend or whatever. Gotta look out for you, right?"

Chloe got up from the bed and enthusiastically threw her arms around Beca for a hug. "You're the best!"

Beca smiled at the action, relieved that Chloe wasn't upset with her. "Yeah, I guess I am."

Chloe laughed and pulled away slightly in order to look at Beca. She was going to say something but words escaped her as she stared at the other girl.

Beca wasn't exactly sure what caused her next action. Maybe it was the way Chloe was looking at her or maybe her brain just decided to malfunction at this very moment because before she could come to her senses, she had leaned in, pressing her lips to Chloe's.

Chloe's eyes fluttered closed and before she could really appreciate the softness of Beca's lips, the brunette had jolted away from her.

"I'm so sorry! That was- I'm- I should go!" Beca quickly left the room, her heart pounding in her chest as she made her way down the hall to her own room. She was sure she had just ruined everything with Chloe.

* * *

><p>Chloe stood frozen for a few seconds before finally moving to sit down on her bed. Beca had kissed her and she had definitely liked it. She replayed what happened in her head and knew that if Beca hadn't made that move, then she would've. Running a hand through her hair, Chloe let out a heavy sigh. This wasn't good. She couldn't have feelings of this magnitude for Beca. Plopping down onto her back, Chloe let out another sigh as she thought about how she was going to approach Beca about this the next time they saw each other.<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

"You kissed her?" Jesse asked, shocked yet impressed. "Nice." They were sitting in Beca's room as Beca divulged what had happened the day prior.

"No," Beca replied, miserably. "Not nice. I've probably ruined any chance of us being friends. "I'm such an idiot. Things are going to be so awkward now."

"Haven't you seen her since yesterday?" Jesse asked. "How was practice?"

"I bailed on it," Beca said, sheepishly. "I need to figure out what I'm going to do. Is it too late to transfer schools?"

Jesse smiled at his friend. "You're being overdramatic. I'm sure Chloe's not upset or anything."

Beca didn't believe that. Chloe hadn't texted her or anything today. Aubrey had been the one to blow up her phone with angry text messages about her being absent from rehearsals. Chloe hadn't bothered.

There was a knock at the door and Jesse looked on in amusement as Beca's eyes widened. "What if that's her?" She whispered.

"That'd be a good thing." Jesse stood up and looked through the peephole before turning back to look at Beca. "It's Stacie."

"She's probably here to kick me out of the Bellas and deliver a restraining order."

"You're ridiculous." Jesse pulled the door open and smiled a greeting at Stacie before looking back at Beca. "I'll catch you later." He slipped out of the room, leaving Stacie standing at the door.

"Hey, can I come in?" Stacie was already walking in before Beca could say anything. She closed the door and took a seat on the swivel chair where Jesse had been sitting before. "So...how's it going?"

Beca sighed. "Chloe told you, didn't she? Do all the Bellas know?"

"Of course not. Just me and Aubrey. We're her best friends. She tells us everything."

"So why are you here?"

"To see if you're okay," Stacie replied, genuinely. "Chloe was hoping to talk to you at rehearsals but you didn't show and she hasn't seen you around campus. She was getting worried."

"She could've texted me or something," Beca mumbled.

"She wants to have this discussion with you in person. There's a lot you two need to talk about. Chloe...," Stacie stopped herself from revealing anything. "Look, it's not my place to tell you how she feels or doesn't feel. You just need to talk to her, okay?"

Beca nodded. "Thanks, Stacie."

"Hey, no problem," Stacie smiled. "So... do you like her?"

Beca bit at her bottom lip before deciding to tell Stacie the truth. "Yeah... a lot. I should've been more careful around her, I guess. I let myself get pulled in and..." Beca sighed and shook her head. "I don't know. She's just amazing. I like everything about her. I feel like I can be myself with her, you know? And she's totally on my level when it comes to music."

"You're into this deep, huh?" Stacie said, teasingly.

"Yeah, and I don't stand a chance do I?"

Stacie knew the answer but decided to wait for Chloe to talk to Beca about it. "I better get going. Chloe will probably be over soon."

Beca's heart broke. Stacie's silence answered her question. "See you around," she said as the brunette made her way over to the door. Stacie gave Beca a sympathetic smile before leaving. Beca was about to drown her sorrows in music when her phone vibrated on her desk. She picked it up and saw that it was a text from Jesse.

Jesse[4:15pm]: Everything okay?

Beca[4:15pm]: No.

Jesse[4:16pm]: It'll be fine. She likes you too.

Beca wanted to believe Jesse but she doubted the senior shared her feelings. She didn't bother texting him back and she was glad that he got the hint. She didn't want to talk about it.

The door to the room opened and Kimmy Jin walked in and glanced over at Beca who was lying on her bed looking like someone had smashed her favorite pair of headphones.

"What's wrong with you?"

"I kissed Chloe."

"And what? It didn't go well?"

"I kind of ran off before I could gauge her reaction and I haven't spoken to her since," Beca explained. "I think I ruined our friendship."

"That sucks," Kimmy said simply before sitting down at her desk and leaving Beca to wallow.

* * *

><p>Chloe was walking towards her dorm building with Aubrey as they discussed her Beca situation. Chloe knew what she needed to do but what she wanted was completely different.<p>

Aubrey could tell her best friend was feeling conflicted but also knew that there was no other option but to remain friends or go their separate ways. "You really do like Beca, don't you?"

Chloe nodded. "So much, Bree. She gets me. I love being around her. And she's so sweet."

Aubrey smirked. "I'll have to take your word for it. Sweet and Beca aren't two words I'd used together."

Chloe playfully bumped Aubrey's shoulder with her own. "She's incredible. This is such crappy timing."

"Do you know what you're going to do yet," Aubrey asked as they neared Baker Hall.

Chloe sighed. "Yeah, but it's going to suck."

They entered the building and went their separate ways; Aubrey to her floor and Chloe to her own. The redhead went into her room and dropped her bag onto the floor before exiting once again. She walked down the hall to Beca's room and stopped in front of the door. Taking a deep breath, she knocked and waited for Beca to answer.

Kimmy Jin opened the door and rolled her eyes at the sight of the redhead. She closed the door without a word, shocking Chloe but seconds later the door opened again and Kimmy exited with her laptop.

"You don't have to leave. We'll go to my room," Chloe assured her.

"Good luck getting her to move."

Chloe watched Kimmy Jin leave before entering the room. She closed the door with a gentle click and looked over at Beca who was lying on her bed listening to music with her eyes closed. She admired the brunette's beauty for a moment before remembering why she was there. She stepped over to the bed and gently tapped Beca on the shoulder.

Beca's eyes opened and they widened at the sight of Chloe. She quickly sat up, pulling her headphones off as she did so.

"Hi," Chloe greeted her, a voice barely above a whisper. "Can we talk?"

"I'm sorry," Beca blurted out. "I shouldn't have kissed you. It was stupid."

Chloe felt a ping in her chest. "Can I be completely honest with you?

Beca nodded and waited for the senior to tell her how she only saw her as a friend.

Chloe moved Beca's desk chair so that it was right in front of Beca before she sat down. She reached her hand out and gently squeezed Beca's hand. "The kiss wasn't stupid. I liked you kissing me."

Beca was taken aback and her heart began to beat with hope. Maybe she did actually stand a chance.

"Beca, I think you're great," Chloe continued, keeping her grasp on Beca's hand. "I like you a lot. It's just that... we can't."

Beca felt disappointment wash over her and she pulled her hand away from Chloe's. "It's fine. I get it. The R.A. thing, right?"

"There's that, but it's mostly because I won't be here next year. I'm graduating."

"Why does that matter? We could still work."

"Once I graduate, I'm going back home where I have a job offer waiting for me."

"Where's home?" Beca had a feeling she wasn't going to like the answer.

"Florida."

"Oh."

"I want us to still be friends. I want you in my life, Beca."

Beca sighed. "Well this sucks."

"It does," Chloe agreed.

"We can definitely still be friends. I wouldn't want that to change."

Chloe smiled, relieved that she would still have the brunette in her life. "Want to hang in my room and listen to music?"

Beca wanted time to deal with her broken heart but she knew Chloe would be sad if she declined. "Yeah, I'd like that." Beca stood up and grabbed her laptop. "How's your throat?"

"Hurts," Chloe replied as she got up as well.

"I'll get you tea and something smooth to eat. I'll meet you at your dorm in a bit. No more talking. You need to rest your vocals."

"You don't have to get me anything," Chloe said.

Beca smiled. "I know I don't have to. I want to. And again, no more talking. I'll see you in a bit."

Chloe smiled and exited the room. As soon as the door closed, Beca's smile faded. Knowing Chloe liked her but they couldn't act on their feelings was worse than the redhead flat out not liking her back. Grabbing her wallet, Beca exited her room and headed out of the building. She would have to deal with her feelings later.

* * *

><p>AN: Waves: The title of this fic has always been the same.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

A few weeks later…

Beca was leaning against a tree working on a mix when a frisbee collided with the tree just above her head and bounced onto her laptop. She picked the plastic object up and looked up to see a girl jogging her way.

"Hey, I am so sorry!" The brunette knelt down beside Beca. "Are you okay?"

Beca nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I love having my life flash before my eyes," she joked, playfully.

The other girl smiled and held out her hand. "Emily. Sorry I'm a bad catch."

Beca shook her hand. "No harm, no foul."

Another girl approached them looking apologetic. "Hey, sorry."

Emily smiled and gestured to the other girl. "This is Paige. The one who almost ended your life."

Beca waved at the other girl. "Are you two like ultimate frisbee geeks?"

Emily smiled. "Actually, we're swim geeks. We're from Pennsylvania. We're just here on a trip to check out Barden's swim team."

Beca nodded towards Emily's shirt. "That's an awesome band. I didn't think anyone knew who they were."

Emily beamed as she looked down at her shirt. "You know who they are?"

"Haunted Hearts is my favorite album by them," Beca replied.

Paige grinned. "I have a feeling you two are about to start talking music." She retrieved the frisbee and gestured behind her. "I'm going to get back to the game. I'll be back over, Em. Nice meeting you, Beca."

"You too," Beca said before Paige left.

"You don't mind do you?" Emily asked as she got comfortable. "I accost every big music fan I find. I like discovering new stuff."

Beca would usually mind but she could use the distraction. She had been making a mix about her feelings for Chloe and it was quite depressing. "I don't mind."

"Awesome," Emily said, happily.

Beca opened up her iTunes and plugged her headphones out from her laptop. As she started up a song by one of her favorite indie bands, she saw Emily smile in recognition. "My girlfriend just introduced me to this band the other day!"

Beca smiled. "Would that be Paige?"

Emily nodded. "Yeah, she's big on music too. We saw a flyer about a band performing at a nearby coffee shop. Are you going to that?"

"I wasn't planning on it," Beca replied.

"You should. We could all go together. And we could have dinner. It'll be on us since we threw a frisbee at your head."

Beca's first thought was to say no, but again, she decided it would be a good distraction. "Okay, yeah. Why not?"

The two launched into conversation about music and as they talked and joked around, Chloe spotted them as she was walking with Aubrey and Stacie.

"Who's that?" Chloe asked with a frown.

Aubrey looked over to where Chloe's gaze had fallen and spotted Beca having a conversation with some girl. "No idea."

"She's cute," Stacie replied earning herself a nudge from Aubrey.

Chloe frowned as she continued to watch them. Beca laughed at something the brunette had said and then pointed to something on her laptop which made the brunette move closer to Beca. Chloe didn't like that. She didn't like it at all. "Come on," she said to her friends miserably as she walked away from the scene.

"They could just be friends," Stacie said. "Beca hasn't mentioned seeing anyone."

"We're just friends and nothing's ever going to happen so there's no reason she shouldn't date. It's fine. I'm fine," Chloe said, though she didn't believe her own words. "I have an assignment I need to work on. I'll talk to you to later."

Aubrey let Chloe walk off and gave Stacie a warning look. "Don't."

"Don't what?" Stacie asked, confused.

"I know you're plotting," she linked her fingers with Stacie's. "This is something they have to deal with on their own."

Stacie sighed. "I just think it's stupid. They both like each other. They should at least be together and see what happens by the end of the school year."

"We know what will happen. Chloe will move and she and Beca will both be distraught. It's good that they're keeping things platonic. They'll get hurt less that way." Aubrey glanced back where Beca was talking to the mystery girl. "Maybe this is a good thing."

Stacie still didn't agree but she guessed they would find out how this mystery girl would affect things between Chloe and Beca.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Chloe was in her room listening to <em>All of Me <em>by John Legend on repeat when she heard a knock on her door. She reluctantly got up and turned off the music before going to open the door. She was surprised to see Beca standing before her with a brown bag and a cup of tea.

"Hey," Beca greeted her. "I brought you soup and tea. I saw you rubbing your throat a lot at rehearsals today. You should really tell Aubrey about your nodes so she'll ease up on you."

Chloe smiled and was sure if her heart could actually melt, it would've at this moment. "God, you're the sweetest." Chloe leaned forward without thinking and placed a kiss on Beca's cheek. "Thank you, Becs. And I'll tell the Bellas soon."

Beca entered the room and set the bag and tea down on the desk. "Do you think you'll need anything else?"

"Your company would be nice," Chloe said. They hadn't spent much time together the last few days and she was missing Beca's presence.

Beca contemplated canceling her plans with Emily and Paige but Chloe noticed her hesitation.

"What's wrong?" Chloe asked.

"I have plans tonight but I can cancel them," Beca assured her.

"No, don't cancel your plans. We can always hang out later. What are you going to be up to?"

"Dinners plans and then checking out a band performing at the on-campus coffee shop."

Okay, so maybe Chloe did want Beca to cancel her plans. She figured the brunette was probably going to have dinner with the mystery girl she saw her with earlier. "Who are you going with?"

"Just some new friends," Beca replied. "Text me if you need anything, okay?"

Chloe nodded, upset that Beca had lied to her. "Have fun."

Beca left the room and Chloe let out a frustrated huff. She guessed the younger girl wanted to spare her feelings is why she didn't tell her that she was going on a date with the cute girl from earlier. Grabbing her cell phone, she texted Aubrey and Stacie her woes while she tried not to think about Beca with another girl.

* * *

><p>"That's rough," Paige said after Beca told them about her situation with Chloe.<p>

"Yeah, I'm just glad we're still friends," Beca said. "She's a really great person."

"A long distance thing might not be too bad," Emily said. "I mean, you could always give it a shot."

"Yeah, but if it doesn't work out, we risk our friendship," Beca explained. "I'm not willing to do that."

"Pretending to be just friends when there's so much more there has got to be tough," Emily said.

"It is," Beca admitted. "But it's better than not having her in my life, ya know?"

Emily nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I get it. I hope things work out for you two."

Paige grinned. "Know what helps with a broken heart?"

Beca quirked a brow. "What?"

* * *

><p>"What if Beca and this girl start dating?" Chloe spoke into her phone. "What if she wants me to meet her? This is the absolute worst."<p>

"Maybe you should start dating someone until you move. Nothing serious. Just… something to take your mind off of Beca."

"That's a horrible idea, Bree." Chloe pulled her phone from her ear to check the time. "It's almost ten. Do you think she's still out?"

"You can text her to find out," Aubrey said. "I'm off to bed. Stop moping so much."

"I can't help it," Chloe said. "I'll see you tomorrow," she said before ending the call.

Chloe[9:52pm]: Hey, Becs. Home yet?

Beca[9:54pm]: Will be soon

Chloe[9:54pm]: Come over?

Beca[9:58pm]: K

Chloe was worried that she was bothering the brunette. Beca always responded more verbosely than this… with her at least. Before Chloe could worry too much about Beca being annoyed with her, there was a knock at her door. She opened it and Beca immediately stumbled into her room. "Hey, Chlo."

Chloe frowned as the smell of alcohol hit her nose. "You've been drinking. You hate drinking."

Beca smiled and kicked off her shoes and removed her jacket before getting onto Chloe's bed. "I needed a couple," she said as she got comfortable.

"Yeah? Why's that?" Chloe asked as she looked down at Beca.

"It helps with a broken heart," Beca informed her, tiredly.

"Did that girl you went on a date with do something to hurt you?" Chloe asked, ready to hunt the girl down.

"What? I didn't go on a date," Beca laughed. "Why do you think I did?"

"I saw you talking to a girl on my way back to the dorm earlier," Chloe replied. "I thought you two were… close."

Beca sat up and looked at Chloe. "How'd you feel about that?"

"About what? You going on a date?" Chloe asked.

Beca nodded.

"Honestly?" Chloe sighed. "Not great. I know we have this weird thing going on between us and I don't have the right to not want you to date, but the idea of it kind of really sucks."

"I feel the same way," Beca assured her as she laid back down on the bed. Too dizzy to stay sitting up. "I just hung out with Emily and her girlfriend, Paige. They're here for the weekend. Paige had a fake ID and figured I could use a drink or three after I told her about you. Can I sleep here?"

"Of course." Chloe was relieved by the news and couldn't help but smile as Beca cuddled into her pillow. "As your RA I should be reprimanding you."

"This pillow smells like you," Beca mumbled, ignoring Chloe's words. "You smell good."

Chloe sat down on her bed and brushed a strand of hair from Beca's face as she remembered why the other girl had been drinking. "Why do you have a broken heart, Beca?"

"Because I can't be with you," Beca said as her eyes closed and she squeezed the pillow tighter to her body. "Night, Chlo."

Chloe leaned down and placed a kiss near the corner of Beca's lips. "Night, Beca." She turned off her light and gently tugged the pillow from Beca's grasp so that she could replace it with herself. Beca put an arm around Chloe's waist and rested her forehead against the back of Chloe's neck as she slept.

Chloe knew 'just friends' wasn't something that was going to work for her and Beca but she didn't know what else they could do that would prevent heart break later down the road. She had tried to cut back on her need for physical contact when it came to Beca but she hadn't been too good at following through with that, hence her current position. Pushing all thoughts from her head, Chloe closed her eyes and decided to enjoy being in Beca's arms just for tonight.

* * *

><p>Beca's eyes fluttered open the following morning and she took note of how ill she felt. Groaning, she rolled onto her back and rubbed her eyes. She dropped her hand from her face and turned her head, seeing Chloe sitting at her desk. "I hate drinking."<p>

Chloe giggled. "Never doing it again?"

"Nope," Beca replied. "Sorry for crashing here."

"It's fine," Chloe smiled. "You know I don't mind. Here." She handed Beca a water bottle and two tablets. "Take those. They'll help you feel better."

"Thanks." Beca took the tablets and gulped down the water. "I didn't do anything stupid did I?" Chloe bit her bottom lip and averted her gaze from Beca's. "Oh no, what'd I do?"

Chloe began to laugh. "I'm messing with you. You came here and passed out. That's it." Beca obviously didn't remember their conversation last night and she didn't see a point in bringing it up.

Beca let out a breath of relief as she got comfortable on the bed again. "Can I go back to bed?"

"Sure," Chloe smiled. "Want breakfast?"

"No," Beca replied. "I can't even think about food."

"Well we have Bella rehearsals in two hours," Chloe pointed out. "You might want to find a way to get life back into that tiny body of yours."

"Shower," Beca mumbled as she rolled out of the bed. "I'll start there."

"Okay, you go do that," Chloe said. "Want to meet there or go together?"

Beca frowned, confused by Chloe's question. "What?"

"Rehearsals," Chloe said. "Want to walk there together?"

"Oh! Yeah, of course. We can walk together."

"What'd you think I meant?" Chloe asked, already knowing the answer.

Beca blushed. "I don't know. I'm still a bit off. I should go take that shower."

"Beca, wait," Chloe stopped her. "I have a doctor's appointment today. Do you think you could come with me?"

"I can," Beca replied as her eyes flashed with worry. "Are your nodes getting worse or something?"

Chloe didn't want the brunette worrying about her so she decided not to say too much on the subject. "It's just a check-up. Nothing to worry about."

"Okay," Beca said, relaxing. "I'll meet you back here in a bit," she said before leaving the room.

Chloe's mind flash to thoughts of Beca in the shower but then mentally chastised herself for the thoughts. It was really hard trying to keep her feelings in check when it came to Beca Mitchell.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Beca parked Chloe's car near their dorm building and shut off the vehicle before looking over at the redhead. Chloe had been quiet after her appointment and even though she said she was fine, Beca could tell that wasn't the case. "Hey, are you doing okay?"

Chloe smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired."

They exited the car and before they could take another step, Beca's name was called. She glanced around and spotted Jesse and Benji making their way towards her.

"Hey," Jesse greeted. "Come hang out with us. We're lonely."

"I actually might have plans," Beca gestured to Chloe.

"Make us a part of your plans," Jesse said. "What are you two going to do?"

"Beca, you should go have fun. We can watch movies whenever." Chloe brought her hand up to rub her throat. "I think I'm going to go talk to Aubrey and Stacie about my problem. Aubrey's already going to be pissed that I didn't tell her sooner. I might as well not drag it out any longer."

"Are you sure?" Beca asked, not wanting to leave Chloe alone when she seemed so sad.

Chloe nodded before kissing Beca on the cheek. "Enjoy your day." Chloe waved goodbye to Jesse and Benji before walking off.

Beca watched Chloe head towards the dorm but something wasn't sitting right with her. "I'll be right back," she said to the guys before going after Chloe. "Chloe are you sure you're okay?"

Chloe smiled her usual bubbly smile hoping to ease Beca's worries. "I'm fine, Becs. You go spend time with your friends."

Beca could tell that Chloe was lying but didn't want to push. "I'll check on you later. Just text me if you need anything."

"Thanks, Beca but don't worry about me. After I talk to Aubrey and Stacie, I'll have some work to catch up on so I won't be great company. I'll see you at practice tomorrow, though."

Beca frowned at Chloe's response. The redhead was always excited to have her over even if she was busy doing homework. She didn't understand why the senior was being distant right now. It wasn't like her at all.

"Enjoy your night," The redhead made her way to Aubrey's dorm, leaving a confused Beca behind.

Jesse approached Beca and took in her confused look. "You okay?"

"Chloe's being weird," Beca stated.

"Did you do something?" Jesse asked, curiously. "I wouldn't be surprised if you did something."

Beca glared at Jesse. "I didn't do anything," she said, dejectedly. Sighing, she shook her head and turned to face the boy. "Maybe she's tired of me."

"Impossible," Benji chimed in as he approached them. "You're awesome."

Beca smiled softly. "Thanks, Benji. Come on, let's go find something to do." Beca knew she wouldn't be able to take her mind off of Chloe but doing something would at least help time go by more quickly until tomorrow when she saw her at practice.

* * *

><p>Chloe approached Aubrey's dorm and knocked on the door. It was opened a minute later by a disheveled Aubrey. She looked past the girl and spotted Stacie lying on the bed fixing her top. "Sorry, I can come back."<p>

Aubrey took in the melancholy look of her best friend. "No, you're good," she stopped the redhead. "What's wrong?"

"I have to tell you something," Chloe said as she entered the room.

Aubrey frowned with concern. "What's going on?"

Chloe took a deep breath as she closed the room door. She looked from Aubrey to Stacie as she spoke. "I have nodes. I've known for a while and I found out today that I'll need to have surgery, which means that I'll probably never be able to sing above a G-sharp."

Aubrey was shocked to hear this news but now things made a lot of sense. Beca's need to bring Chloe tea whenever possible, Chloe not performing as well as she used to. "I'm sorry, Chlo." Aubrey hugged her best friend. "Are you okay?"

"I'm really upset but I'll be fine."

Stacie got up from the bed and hugged the girl as well. "Do you need anything? When's your surgery? We can totally be there."

Chloe shook her head. "Not right now. I won't have my surgery until after the season is over."

"Doesn't it hurt when you sing?" Stacie asked with concern.

"A little but I can manage," Chloe assured her.

"Well you'll obviously need to rest your vocals more," Aubrey said. "Maybe start taking it easy at rehearsals. We have regionals coming up so you'll need to rest up before then."

"I will," Chloe promised.

"Speaking of resting, how are you and Beca?" Stacie asked.

Chloe laughed. "Stacie that wasn't leeway into conversation about Beca."

"I know. I didn't see an opening so I made one," Stacie sat down on the bed.

"Why'd you tell her and not us first?" Aubrey asked, hurt obvious in her features.

"She found out on her own," Chloe said. "And Stacie, to answer your question, we've been okay but I think maybe we need a break from each other. It'll make things easier for her once I'm gone if she gets used to not having me around all the time. Besides, it's becoming harder for me to keep my feelings in check."

"I don't see her liking that idea very much," Stacie stated.

"I know," Chloe said. "It'll be good for us, though."

* * *

><p>One week later...<p>

Beca walked up to Aubrey's room door and knocked on it with force. It was late but she was furious. Chloe had been avoiding her and she hadn't seen her at practice at all this week. She had tried to sleep but she couldn't deal with this anymore. She knew the second best person to go to about this would be Chloe's best friend but she had a feeling Aubrey would give her a hard time.

The door opened and Aubrey looked surprised to see Beca. "Beca it's ten o'clock. If this is about the new set list you proposed, I'm still going over it."

"It's about Chloe," Beca said.

Aubrey folded her arms across her chest. "I can't talk about that topic with you."

Beca rolled her eyes. She didn't have time for this. "Why has she been avoiding me?"

"You'll have to talk to Chloe about anything involving her."

Beca let out a frustrated breath. "I'd do that if she was talking to me but she's not."

"She's just busy."

Beca narrowed her eyes at the blonde. "Every day this week?"

"Senior year is a busy time," Aubrey stated, coolly.

"Aubrey, please," Beca said, trying to remain patient. "I miss her, she's being really distant and it sucks."

Aubrey's shoulder slumped and she let out a sigh. Chloe was going to kill her. "She likes you a lot, Beca and it's just difficult for her to be around you feeling the way that she does. She just wants space to deal with her feelings. She thinks it'll be easier when she leaves if you're both used to being apart."

"Why couldn't she just talk to me about this?" Beca asked.

"She didn't want to tell you any of this because she was afraid it would upset you. This whole thing isn't easy for her," Aubrey explained.

"I'm not exactly thrilled about this situation myself." Beca let out a frustrated breath. "I'm going to go talk to her."

"Please don't cause a scene." Aubrey didn't want Beca getting Chloe into trouble and risking her RA position.

"I just want to talk to her," Beca said before leaving the room and heading up to the above floor. She pounded on the door much like she had Aubrey's and waited for Chloe to open it.

Chloe opened the door with a frown. "Beca wha-,"

"You've been ignoring me," Beca blurted out.

Chloe pulled Beca into the room and closed her door. "I've been busy."

"Yeah, busy avoiding me and I'm sick of it. We need to deal with our feelings." Beca wasn't usually this verbal about her feelings but she had a lot that she needed to get off her chest before she exploded. "We like each other. Just friends isn't working."

"Beca," Chloe began. "We can't-,"

"Why do we have to worry about the future?" Beca took a step towards Chloe. "I want to be with you."

"We get together and then what? We break-up once I graduate?" Chloe tried to keep her emotions in check. She couldn't let what she wanted win out over what she knew was necessary. "I can't deal with that pain, Beca. Why start something that's going to cause us heart break later?"

"We can do long-distance," Beca suggested.

Chloe had thought about that. She had even come up with different long-stance scenarios but it wouldn't work for her. She didn't think she could handle it. She was a physical person. "I can't do long-distance, Beca."

"We can try. What I can't do is pretend that this whole "just friends" thing is working because it's killing me, Chloe."

"Beca, please don't do this," Chloe pleaded.

"Do what? Care about you? I'm willing to put effort into a relationship with you. Are you willing to do the same or not?" Beca stepped back towards the door. "I'll give you time to think about your answer," she said before leaving the room.

Chloe moved towards the door to open it, but stopped with her hand on the doorknob. She couldn't go after Beca when she didn't have an answer.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Beca was sitting next to Amy during rehearsals while Chloe sat on the opposite end next to Stacie. The two hadn't spoken since their conversation a few days ago and Beca knew that their friendship was over. She almost regretted letting her feelings get the best of her but she knew that it was good to tell Chloe how she felt.

"You should try talking to her instead of staring at the back of her head," Amy whispered.

Beca averted her gaze from Chloe and looked at the Australian. "I messed up with her."

"Then fix things," Amy said.

"It's not that simple," Beca assured her. "It's… we don't agree on something and it has ruined our friendship."

"Is this about you liking each other?" Amy asked.

Beca's eyes widened. "What? No. We don't-,"

"You suck at lying," Amy cut her off. "Why aren't you together? Is it the RA thing?"

Beca sighed. "No, it's the graduating thing. She doesn't want to do long-distance."

"Real bummer," Amy said, sympathetically.

"Yeah," Beca agreed. "So now things are weird between us because I think we should go for it anyway."

Aubrey clapped her hands together from where she was standing by the whiteboard. "Okay, ladies. It's cardio time."

Everyone got up except Amy, who remained as still as possible. Aubrey quirked a brow and folded her arms across her chest. "That means you too, Amy." When the blonde didn't respond, Aubrey rolled her eyes. "Up! Now!"

Amy groaned and stood up. "I was trying to be invisible."

"Yeah, didn't work." Aubrey gestured towards the bleachers. "Let's go."

Chloe shook her head in amusement at Amy's antics and looked over at Beca who was walking her way. "I swear Amy's always trying to get out of cardio."

"Yeah, can't say that I blame her. This isn't exactly the highlight of my day," Beca said, trying to stay cordial.

"Hey, um… what are doing after rehearsals?" Chloe wanted to get herself and Beca back onto the right track.

"I got a job at the on-campus radio station," Beca replied. "I'll be busy."

"Oh, that's really cool, Beca!" Chloe replied, trying to pull a conversation out of the brunette.

"Yeah, it's alright if you like stacking CDs." Beca gestured towards the bleachers. "I better get to it."

"Yeah, sure." Chloe watched Beca walk away and turned to Aubrey with a frown. "I hate this," she said, quietly.

"She's being immature," Aubrey said, not liking that Beca had thrown her best friend into a funk. "She should understand where you're coming from."

"Maybe I'm wrong, though," Chloe said. "Maybe I should take the chance."

"Do you feel that way because you want Beca to talk to you again or because you really want to give you two a shot?"

"I'll never meet anyone like her again. She's perfect," Chloe explained. "I'd be stupid to let her go, right?"

"Then you both get hurt in the end," Aubrey pointed out. "Is it worth it?"

Chloe looked over at Beca who was running up the bleachers as she thought about her best friend's words.

* * *

><p>Beca entered her dorm room after her work at the radio station. She sat down on her bed and thought about going to speak to Chloe. She knew she was being unfair but she needed space to deal with her feelings for the redhead. She did miss them being friends, though. Pulling out her phone, Beca took a deep breath before scrolling to Chloe's name. She typed out 'Can we talk?' and stared at it for a few seconds as she thought about whether to add more or leave it at that.<p>

A knock sounded on her door, drawing her attention away from this very important matter. She ignored it, hoping the person would just go away. Beca added 'I'm sorry for how I've been' to her text and reread it wondering if that would be enough.

The knock sounded again and Beca sighed as she stood up. Her thumb hovered over the send button as her heart beat hard against her chest. This was nerve-wracking. She pressed send and tossed her phone onto her dresser as if the action had caused her phone to heat up. She moved to the door and opened it figuring Jesse would be outside of it, but she was surprised to see Chloe.

"Chloe."

Chloe pushed Beca into the room and closed the door before placing her hand behind Beca's neck and pulling her in for a kiss.

Beca was shocked at first so it took her a few seconds to return the kiss but when she did, she poured everything into it. When things began to heat up it took all the willpower Beca could muster to pull away from the redhead. "What does this mean?" She breathed out.

"I don't know," Chloe admitted. "I just couldn't go another day pushing down my feelings."

Beca brought her hand up to stroke the side of Chloe's face. "We should talk."

"Later." Chloe kissed Beca again. "Come to my room with me?"

Beca nodded and followed Chloe out of the room and down the hall. Chloe opened the door and allowed Beca to walk in before she stepped in behind her.

Chloe leaned in ghosting her lips over Beca's. "Do you want this?"

Beca placed both her hands on either side of Chloe's face as she crashed their lips together.

* * *

><p>Beca smiled to herself as she laid on Chloe's bed with her hand keeping her head propped up as she watched Chloe sleep. She knew they had jumped into this but the sexual tension had definitely been there long before today. She moved her hand up to Chloe's face and removed a strand of hair from her face. Their night had been perfect. She just hoped it wasn't a one-time thing.<p>

Chloe let out a light moan as she stretched. "Hey," she said, softly.

Beca smiled. "Hi."

"So we should talk." Chloe noticed worry take over Beca's eyes and she leaned up to kiss her. "I like you a lot, Beca. It's hard just being friends so I have a proposition."

"I won't do anything half-ass," Beca warned her. "Either we're in this or we're not."

Chloe sat up and leaned against the headboard. "I want to be in this. I just think we should take it a day at a time. Be together and then decide what we want to do when it comes time for me to leave."

Beca sat up, holding the sheets against her chest. "That sounds exactly like what we've been trying to avoid. What if you still think you can't do the distance? You get your fun now and dump me before you leave?

Chloe placed her hand on top of Beca's. "I worded that wrong. We can see how we are as a couple and if we work, then we can do the distance. I'm not saying that I want us to break-up no matter what as soon as the school year is over."

Beca turned the idea around in her head for a moment before speaking. "I want a serious relationship with you."

"And that's what I want," Chloe promised. "We'll take things a day at a time and go from there."

"Okay, so… what does this mean?"

"It means I'm willing to try," Chloe said. "I like you a lot and I don't want to miss out on an opportunity because I'm afraid of what will happen when I move."

"So would you be my girlfriend or are we just friends who sleep together because friends with benefits isn't exactly a serious thing."

Chloe's shoulders slumped. "You're making this harder."

"I'm just making sure we're on the same page," Beca stated.

"Can we not put a title on it right now?" Chloe asked. "We'll go on dates and see what happens. Is that something you're okay with? Are you okay with us dating?"

"Dating exclusively?" Beca wanted to make sure she had covered everything before she agreed to anything.

Chloe nodded. "Of course. I'm not interested in anyone but you."

"Okay," Beca said. "Dating. I'm okay with that." Chloe smiled and kissed Beca gently.

"I'm sorry for how I've been. I was upset with the situation," Beca said.

"I understand. I'm not upset with you." Chloe cuddled into Beca. "Aubrey's going to flip."

Beca chuckled. "She wouldn't be Aubrey if she didn't. So besides Aubrey are we telling people about us?"

Chloe smiled. "We can tell the Bellas. And you want to tell Jesse and Benji don't you?"

Beca shrugged. "It might come up while we're hanging out so… yeah, maybe."

Chloe laughed. "You can tell them, Beca. It's fine. I'm sure you'll need date planning advice from Jesse."

"Hey!" Beca poked Chloe in her side. "I can totally plan a date on my own."

"Yeah, I guess we'll see," Chloe grinned.

Beca smirked. "I'm pretty awesome and as you know, amazing in bed. I can't really go wrong."

Chloe pretended to think. "I don't recall how you were in bed. I might need a reminder of your sexual prowess."

"I could make that happen," Beca said as she leaned in to kiss Chloe.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

The following morning Chloe woke up to an empty room and worry quickly overtook her. What if Beca had changed her mind? She was just about to get up when her room door opening and Beca slipped in with a cup and a brown paper bag.

"Morning," Beca greeted her as she tossed Chloe's room key on her desk.

Chloe smiled and leaned against the headboard as she held the bed sheet up to her chest. "Morning. Where'd you head off to?"

"Had to get you breakfast." Beca handed Chloe her cup of tea and then pulled a bowl of oatmeal out of the brown paper bag. "Apple cinnamon. You did a lot of moaning last night," Beca winked at the redhead, "so I figured I should give you something that would be smooth going down since your throat might be bothering you."

Chloe chuckled. "Do you want to know what's smooth going down?"

"Don't be a perv," Beca playfully chastised.

Chloe set her tea down and accepted the bowl. "You're the best, Beca. Thank you."

"I try." Beca kicked off her shoes and laid down on bed.

"What about you?" Chloe asked. "Aren't you hungry?"

"No, I'm good. How is your throat feeling?" Beca queried.

Chloe hadn't told Beca about the surgery she would have to have since they hadn't been on the best of terms. She set her bowl down on her nightstand and looked at Beca. "After we're done with the competition, I have to get my nodes removed."

"Will that change how you sing?" Beca asked.

Chloe nodded. "But it's my only option."

Beca reached for Chloe's hand. "I'm sorry, Chlo. Is there anything I can do?"

Chloe smiled and kissed Beca gently. "Nothing that you're not already doing."

"Can I go with you when you have your surgery?" Beca asked.

Chloe smirked. "You'll have to meet my parents if you do."

"Yikes, parents," Beca said, making a comical face. "I think I can deal with meeting them. Now eat. Your oatmeal will get cold." Beca got up from the bed and kissed Chloe on the forehead. "Are you going to be free tonight? I was thinking a date would be nice."

Chloe smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I'll be free. What'd you have in mind?"

"You'll see later this afternoon," Beca said. "Dress warm."

"Do I get a hint?" Chloe asked, wanting to know what Beca had up her sleeve.

"Nope." Beca left the room and headed to her own, leaving a smiling Chloe behind.

Chloe's phone vibrated and she picked it up from her nightstand to glance at the caller id. "Hey, Mom," she answered.

"Good morning, sweetie," Mrs. Beale greeted. "I meant to call yesterday but got busy. I saw this amazing apartment building yesterday. It's in a great area and close to where you'd be working. I scoped it out and it's really a great place. I think you'd love it."

"I still have a couple of months before I have to think about that stuff, Mom," Chloe said.

"Well I know that, sweetie. I thought you'd be more excited than that. You've been thrilled about moving back and starting work. Is that not the case anymore?"

Sometimes Chloe loved how her mother just seemed to know things and other times she really wished that wasn't the case. "Um-,"

"Don't you utter one lie to me Chloe Elizabeth," Mrs. Beale warned.

Chloe sighed. "Things are… a little more complicated now."

"What do you mean?"

Chloe ran a hand through her hair as she thought about how her mother would feel about her current situation. "I've met someone…"

"Okay." Mrs. Beale said nothing else as she waited for her daughter to continue.

"She's really great."

"She?" Mrs. Beale sounded a bit surprised.

"Yeah, she. I've told you guys that I'm bi."

"But you only ever brought boys around and you've never mentioned dating any girls. I guess I just forgot."

"Well, still very much bi," Chloe said. "Is that- are you upset?"

"What? No. Of course not. Continue, hon. This girl is really great."

Chloe smiled. "Yeah, she's amazing and she's a freshman. If I move, that might put a strain on things, you know?"

"Robbing the cradle, huh?" Mrs. Beale joked.

"Mom," Chloe whined. "I'm not. She's eighteen. I'm only three years older."

"I'm just teasing," Mrs. Beale laughed. "So it sounds like you have a tough decision to make."

"You won't be upset if I stay? I know you and dad helped me get that job I have lined up and I really appreciate everything you've done for me. Paying for my school and everything. I don't want to let you down."

"We just want you to be happy, dear. If staying in Atlanta will make you happy then do that. If moving back out here will be what makes you happy, then do that. It's up to you."

"I guess I'll have a couple of months to think about it," Chloe said. "Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime, sweetie. I'll see you for the holidays."

"Okay, talk to you later." Chloe ended the call and picked up her bowl of oatmeal. She smiled as she looked down at it. Beca was amazing. No one had ever treated her so sweet or made her feel so special. This really was going to be a tough decision.

* * *

><p>"Dad, I only agreed to lunch because you begged," Beca warned. "If you keep teasing me, I'm leaving."<p>

Ethan laughed at the pout his daughter was sporting. "Okay, Becs. No need to pout."

"I'm not pouting!" Beca frowned as she picked up her drink to sip it.

"You know, I'm not surprised," Ethan said. "I could tell how much you liked Chloe."

"We're not talking about this," Beca said.

"You brought it up," Ethan said, amused. "You said you needed advice."

"Bad call on my part." Beca had told her father about Chloe and he had been teasing her about it.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Ethan said. "I just think it's adorable how you're being. I would've never thought you were such a romantic. Anyway, it sounds like you two are doing the right thing. Dating and seeing how you two work out. If you're solid, then maybe you'll work out even with the distance between you."

Beca hoped her father was right. She would spend the next couple of months making sure Chloe realized how awesome they would be together.

* * *

><p>Chloe bounced in her seat as they neared the ice skating ring. Beca looked over at Chloe and laughed. "Excited?"<p>

"I haven't been ice skating in years!" Chloe undid her seatbelt and leaned over to the driver seat to kiss Beca. "This is going to be so much fun!"

Beca smiled, happy to see Chloe thrilled about their date. "I've never been before so we'll see how this goes." She exited the car and followed Chloe towards the building. She had driven them to a location an hour away to avoid anyone from Barden seeing them. It had been a fun drive that went by really fast due to them singing and joking around.

Chloe reached for Beca's hand and entered the building with her. After they got their skates and got them on, Chloe excitedly got into the skating rink.

Beca watched the redhead take off, gliding flawlessly around the entire rink before making her way back towards her.

"Come on, Becs!" Chloe helped Beca into the rink and kissed her before releasing her hand and skating backwards.

Beca shook her head in amusement. "I need you here, Beale. If you're far away, I'll probably bust my ass every other minute."

Chloe smiled and made her way back over to Beca. "I'm here. Don't worry." She linked their fingers together and brought them up to kiss the back of Beca's already cold hand. "You should've worn gloves."

"Gloves are for wimps," Beca stated as she slowly got the hang of keeping her balance.

Chloe held onto Beca's hand as she helped the brunette move around the rink. Once Beca seemed to be confident, she released her hand and watched her move around on her own. "You'll be a pro before you know it."

Beca laughed. "I highly doubt that."

Chloe caught up to the brunette and linked their fingers together once again. "How about this, if you manage to skate around the rink without falling, I'll-," Chloe moved her lips to Beca's ear and whispered something to her.

Beca smirked, though a blush was creeping up her neck. "Something tells me you'd be down with doing that even if I do fall."

Chloe grinned. "Yeah, but we could do it a lot sooner if you don't."

"Challenge accepted. I'm totally making this rink my bitch by the end of this date."

* * *

><p>Stacie was in the process of trying to get into her girlfriend's pants but the blonde was too busy worrying about Chloe and Beca's relationship.<p>

"What if they don't work out?" Aubrey asked as Stacie placed kisses along her stomach. "They'll both be miserable."

"I thought you were happy for them," Stacie said as she nipped at Aubrey's skin.

Aubrey let out a moan as she trailed her fingers through Stacie's hair. "I am. I'm just saying that this has the potential to be a very bad idea. I'm trying to be the logical one."

"How about being the supportive one?" Stacie asked as she moved up Aubrey's body. "Let them be happy."

Aubrey sighed. "You're right. I'd just hate to see them get hurt."

"I know," Stacie agreed. "But they're big girls. They'll figure it out. And right now, I'd really like you to stop speaking."

Aubrey's mouth dropped in mock offense. "Rude, much?"

"No, just really horny and while I have my hot girlfriend under me, I'd really like to do something about that."

Aubrey grinned and leaned up to kiss Stacie. "Okay, then do something about it."

"Yes, ma'am," Stacie said before leaning down to capture Aubrey's lips.

* * *

><p>Hours later…<p>

Chloe opened her room door and allowed Beca to walk in before she entered as well. She closed the door softly and as Beca turned around to say something, Chloe pressed their lips together. Beca moaned into the kiss and wasted no time deepening it as she, pushed Chloe against the door with a loud thud.

Chloe broke the kiss and began to trail her lips along Beca's jawline as she spoke. "I had a great time. Best date ever and…" Chloe pulled back to look at Beca and the brunette noticed the redhead's eyes twinkle mischievously, "you won the bet."

Beca smiled. "I had a great time too, Chlo. I definitely don't expect anything to happen, though. If you just wanted to talk or even cuddle, I'm down with that."

Chloe nipped at Beca's pulse point. "Oh no, you're so getting laid."

"I'm definitely down with that too," Beca said before crashing her lips to Chloe's once again.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

A few weeks later…

Beca was walking with Chloe through the grocery store and frowned when she saw the redhead pick up hot sauce. "Chlo, you can't have that."

Chloe looked at Beca in confusion. "Why not?"

"It can cause acid reflux and irritate your nodes even more," Beca stated. "And I didn't want to be annoying but," Beca pointed to the sprite in the cart. "That's not a good idea either. It's carbonated. It could aggravate your vocal cord area too."

Chloe simply stared at Beca and the brunette instantly felt bad.

Beca scratched at the back of her neck. "Look, I'm not trying to tell you what to do. I'm just trying to help."

Chloe smiled and stepped over to Beca to kiss her. "You've done more research than I thought."

Beca shrugged. "Just want to make sure you're okay."

Chloe kissed Beca again. "You're sweet. It doesn't matter what I do, though, Becs. They're getting removed no matter what I do."

"Yeah, but until then, you don't want it bothering you, right?" Beca asked. "You should stick to smoother beverages. I'll do the same, you know, for solidarity or whatever."

Chloe didn't think she'd ever get over how caring Beca was. "God, I lo-," Chloe froze for a second before continuing. "love _this_ stuff," she picked up the hot sauce and put it back where she had gotten it. "It'll be hard to give it up even for a little while."

Beca took note of Chloe's flustered state and wondered what she was about to say. "You'll get to have it before you know it," she assured her.

Chloe leaned over and kissed Beca on the cheek. "Thanks for looking out for me." She was about to say something else when she noticed the Dean of Barden University walking down the aisle. "Shit," she muttered.

"What?" Beca asked.

"The guy in the suit walking our way," Chloe began. "That's the Dean of Barden."

Beca's eyes widened. "Oh… shit."

"Yeah, just be cool," Chloe said as the Dean waved to her.

Chloe smiled brightly and waved back.

"Ms. Beale," The Dean greeted her. "How are you?"

"I'm great, Dean Evans," Chloe said, happily but her heart was thumping in her chest.

Evans looked at Beca and smiled. "Are you a Barden student as well?"

Beca nodded. "Beca," she introduced herself.

"Beca…," Dean Evans held out his hand to shake Beca's.

"Mitchell," Beca replied as she shook the man's hand.

"Any relation to Ethan Mitchell?"

"I'm his daughter." Beca knew the more information the man got the easier it would be for him to narrow down that she was a-

"Freshman, right?" Evans asked. "Baker hall?"

Beca nodded. There was no point in lying. Baker hall was an all freshmen dorm building sans the RAs.

"How are you enjoying your freshman year?" Evans asked.

"It's great," Beca replied.

"Glad to hear it," Dean Evans looked to Chloe. "Ms. Beale are you free for a meeting on Monday? I'd like to see you in my office."

"Yes, sir, I'll call the office and set something up," Chloe answered, already knowing she was in trouble.

"Great, you two enjoy your day."

Beca watched the man walk off before looking at Chloe. "Shit, I'm sorry. I should've lied or something."

Chloe shook her head. "He would've found out the truth anyway. This isn't your fault."

"Maybe the meeting is unrelated," Beca stated with hope.

"He knows I'm an RA for Baker Hall," Chloe sighed. "I should've been more careful out here." Chloe ran a hand through her hair. "We should go."

Beca walked with Chloe out of the store, abandoning the cart. From the distance Chloe kept between them on the way to the car, she had a feeling that all the progress they had made was about to unravel.

* * *

><p>Beca was sitting in her dorm with Jesse as she told the boy about the previous day. She hadn't spoken to Chloe much since yesterday but the redhead was also busy packing and getting ready for her trip back home for the holidays.<p>

"That's tough," Jesse said. "Do you think she's going to get fired from being an RA?"

"I hope not. We should've been more careful," Beca sighed.

"Maybe she'll just get a warning and have to- never mind," Jesse said when he realized what he was about to say.

"Dump me," Beca finished for him. "I have a feeling that's what it's going to come down to."

"Maybe he didn't see her kiss you," Jesse offered. "Maybe the meeting really is unrelated."

"Let's just not talk about it anymore," Beca said. "There's something else that happened. I think… well, I'm pretty sure she almost told me she loved me."

Jesse's eyes widened. "That's big."

"Definitely," Beca agreed. "But she stopped herself so maybe she doesn't."

"No one accidentally tells someone they love them. If she almost said it, it's because it's what she feels. Would you say it back if she said it?"

Beca shrugged. "I have feelings… deep feelings. I don't know what to categorize them as but um… yeah, maybe." Jesse grinned and Beca rolled her eyes. "What?"

Jesse held his hands up in mock surrender. "Nothing. So what are you doing for the holidays?"

"Just staying with my dad and the step-monster," Beca replied. "Are you going home?"

Jesse nodded. "I am. I guess you and Chloe will have some practice with the long-distance thing while she's in Florida."

Beca hadn't thought of that before. "True. This could make or break everything."

"Well, her being fired from being an RA could actually do that," Jesse pointed out.

"Let's say that isn't going to happen," Beca said, narrowing her eyes at her friend. "Then this holiday is going to be a trial run."

"That's good, though, right?" Jesse asked.

"I hope so," Beca said, wondering how the holidays apart from Chloe would go.

* * *

><p>"This isn't good, Chloe!" Aubrey yelled as she paced her dorm. "You could get fired and if that happens, you'll have to slum it in another dorm with a crappy roommate and it'll be expensive."<p>

"I know," Chloe replied with a sigh. "I don't know for sure if he saw anything, though."

"Relax, Bree," Stacie said from her spot on Aubrey's bed. "She can totally talk her way out of this."

"Really?" Aubrey asked in disbelief. "How is she going to do that?"

Stacie shrugged. "No idea but something will come to me before Monday."

"You'll probably get an ultimatum," Aubrey stated. "End things or get fired."

Stacie quirked a brow before looking at Chloe. "Which one of those things would you choose?"

Chloe bit her bottom lip as she thought for a few seconds. "I'd obviously have to choose-,"

* * *

><p>"Chloe?" Beca knocked on the redhead's door but didn't receive an answer. Sighing, she headed back to her room and sat down on her chair. Jesse had gone back to his room and Beca had decided to check on her girlfriend but she guessed the redhead was with Aubrey or Stacie.<p>

The room door opened and Kimmy Jin stepped inside, looking at Beca briefly before moving to sit down at her desk. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Beca answered.

"Then why are you making that face?" Kimmy asked. "Did Chloe finally realize she could do better than you?"

Beca rolled her eyes. "Someone saw us together and it could be bad news for Chloe."

"Vague."

Beca sighed. "The Dean saw us together."

"That sucks," Kimmy said, nonchalantly. "She'll probably get fired and have to pay a ridiculous amount of money in housing now. At least she graduates soon."

Beca glared at the back of Kimmy Jin's head before grabbing her laptop and moving to sit on her bed. She placed her headphones on and got lost in creating her mixes.


End file.
